Request for Information for Future Ground Station Unified Radio Frequency Capabilities
THIS IS A REQUEST FOR INFORMATION ONLY. This RFI is issued solely for information and planning purposes - it does not constitute a Request for Proposal (RFP) or a promise to issue an RFP in the future. This RFI does not commit the Government to contract for any supply or service whatsoever. Further, the Army is not at this time seeking proposals and will not accept unsolicited proposals. Responders are advised that the U.S. Government will not pay for any information or administrative costs incurred in response to this RFI; all costs associated with responding to this RFI will be solely at the interested party's expense. The Army has not made a commitment to procure any of the items discussed, and release of this RFI should not be construed as such a commitment or as authorization to incur cost for which reimbursement would be required or sought. This notice is part of Government market research, a continuous process for obtaining the latest information on the status of the industry. Not responding to this RFI does not preclude participation in any future RFP, if any is issued. If a solicitation is released, it will be synopsized on the Federal Business Opportunities (FedBizOpps) website. It is the responsibility of the potential offerors to monitor these sites for additional information pertaining to this requirement.
The United States Army, Project Manager Distributed Common Ground System - Army is seeking information on the current state of technology for unified Radio Frequency (RF) capabilities in the receive/transmission of Common Data Link (CDL) waveforms, and Ultra High/Very High/Super High frequency for tactical Line of Sight and satellite communications. The intent is to gather information on the antennas, transceivers, and black-side processing that can create and support a unified platform and/or converge equipment. The purpose is to consolidate the existing networking/communications equipment to reduce the size, weight, power and cooling (SWaP-C) requirements with flexibility and scalability, to support a future mobile ground station system. The future ground station system is anticipated to replace the current Tactical-Intelligence Ground Station, Operational-Intelligence Ground Station, Advanced Miniaturized Data Acquisition System Dissemination Vehicle and Remote Ground Terminal. Critical to these ground stations is the ability to interface and be interoperable with a variety of sensor feeds in support of tactical intelligence data collection. The future ground station is looking to consolidate and/or reduce the physical footprint of existing RF antennas and their associated processing components. Examples of technology solutions that could support the previously stated objectives are phased arrays and integrated Command, Control, Computers, Communications, Cyber, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance Modular Open Suite of Standards (CMOSS) solutions.
Responders are requested to provide:
1. Description of the unified RF capability, including:
a. System description with specific details in relation to: antennas, RF distribution (receive and transmit), transceivers, modems, power amps, waveform and data processing, software algorithms, GUI, GPS and precision timing, associated Communications Security/Transmission Security
b. Technology Readiness Levels for the systems and components
c. SWaP-C specifications
d. Interfaces required (List I/Os on the system and sub-system levels), regulatory standards and certificates the solution satisfies, references, etc. and specify if have or plan for CMOSS compatibility
e. Compatible signals and associated specifications/functions for each signal
f. Built in Test, and fault detection and isolation details
g. Field of View (per band) - Azimuth/elevation coverage (for transmit and receive), directivity
h. Concurrent signal processing capabilities (number of signals the system can execute simultaneously; scalability)
i. Operational capabilities (if any) during on-the-move operations
j. Reliability, mean time between failure specifications - denote if theorized, notional, or actual solution specs
k. Performance Data - Actual, measured performance/test data, if available (i.e. link closure ranges, data rates, etc.)
l. Details of hardware qualification and ruggedization; including regulatory standard compliance (i.e. ISO, IEC, IEE, ANSI)
m. The following metrics are requested with the response: Frequency range and bands, Sensitivity, Gain, Bandwidth & Instantaneous Bandwidth, supported modulation types
2. Number of applicable solutions and commercial availability (current, future)
3. Customizability of any proposed solution
4. Timeline associated with any planned development
5. Estimated production timeline, approach for future upgrades
6. Details of Information Assurance (IA) compliance and Authority to Operate on classified networks
7. Projected unit costs based on production lot quantities
8. Please answer the following questions:
a. What are the data rights for the product?
b. Are there open Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) for the product?
c. What third party waveforms are supported today?
d. What is the development ecosystem composed of?
Proprietary information, if any, should be minimized and MUST BE CLEARLY MARKED. To aid the Government, please segregate proprietary information. Please be advised that all submissions become Government property and will not be returned.
Non-Disclosure Agreement (NDA)
RFI respondents are informed that employees of the firms identified below may assist the Government with its market research. These individuals will be authorized access to the RFI responses to enable them to perform their respective duties. The firms will be prohibited from competing on a future related acquisition. Respondents may contact the firm POCs listed here if an NDA is desired.
- Booz Allen Hamilton Inc., Mr. David Hubbard, Hubbard_David@bah.com
- MITRE Corp, Ms. Carol Pomales, cpomales@mitre.org
The Government will use the information submitted in response to this notice at its discretion and will not provide comments to any submission; however, the Government reserves the right to contact any respondent to this notice for the sole purpose of enhancing understanding of the notice submission. All responses and material provided must be UNCLASSIFIED and will be treated as confidential. Company proprietary data will be reviewed by Government employees and authorized representatives only. Responses to this notice are not offers and cannot be accepted by the Government to form a binding contract. Responders are solely responsible for all expenses associated with responding to this RFI.
Stephen G Cutchin, Contract Specialist, Phone 443-861-5382, Email stephen.g.cutchin.civ@mail.mil - Matthew C. Ebner, Procurement Contracting Officer, Phone 443-861-5390, Email matthew.c.ebner.civ@mail.mil
